Against Harmony traces the history of progressive and radical experiments in Japanese Buddhist thought and practice from the mid-Meiji period through the early Shōwa period (1885–1935), when ...
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Against Harmony traces the history of progressive and radical experiments in Japanese Buddhist thought and practice from the mid-Meiji period through the early Shōwa period (1885–1935), when historical events coalesced to eliminate all such experiments. It is a work of both intellectual history and of critical, comparative thought. Perhaps the two best representations of progressive Buddhism during this period were the New Buddhist Fellowship (1899–1915) and the Youth League for Revitalizing Buddhism (1931–1936). Both were nonsectarian, lay movements comprising young men with education in classical Buddhist texts as well as Western literature, philosophy, and religion. Their work effectively collapses commonly held distinctions between religion, philosophy, ethics, politics, and economics. Unlike many others of their day, these “New Buddhists” did not regard the novel forces of modernization as problematic and disruptive, but rather, as an opportunity to explore and expand the possibilities of the dharma. Moreover, these and similar Buddhist and Buddhist-inspired movements experimented with novel, alternative forms of modernity, rooted in variations on what might be called “dharmic materialism.” In short, they did not simply inherit or mimic the dominant Western model(s). For this reason, their work remains of relevance in the early twenty-first century.Less

Against Harmony : Progressive and Radical Buddhism in Modern Japan

James Mark Shields

Published in print: 2017-06-29

Against Harmony traces the history of progressive and radical experiments in Japanese Buddhist thought and practice from the mid-Meiji period through the early Shōwa period (1885–1935), when historical events coalesced to eliminate all such experiments. It is a work of both intellectual history and of critical, comparative thought. Perhaps the two best representations of progressive Buddhism during this period were the New Buddhist Fellowship (1899–1915) and the Youth League for Revitalizing Buddhism (1931–1936). Both were nonsectarian, lay movements comprising young men with education in classical Buddhist texts as well as Western literature, philosophy, and religion. Their work effectively collapses commonly held distinctions between religion, philosophy, ethics, politics, and economics. Unlike many others of their day, these “New Buddhists” did not regard the novel forces of modernization as problematic and disruptive, but rather, as an opportunity to explore and expand the possibilities of the dharma. Moreover, these and similar Buddhist and Buddhist-inspired movements experimented with novel, alternative forms of modernity, rooted in variations on what might be called “dharmic materialism.” In short, they did not simply inherit or mimic the dominant Western model(s). For this reason, their work remains of relevance in the early twenty-first century.

Justin Ritzinger

Anarchy in the Pure Land investigates the cult of Maitreya, the future Buddha, promoted by the Chinese Buddhist reform movement spearheaded by Taixu as an avenue through which to consider the ...
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Anarchy in the Pure Land investigates the cult of Maitreya, the future Buddha, promoted by the Chinese Buddhist reform movement spearheaded by Taixu as an avenue through which to consider the formation of alternative modernities. The cult presents an apparent anomaly: It shows precisely the kind of concern for ritual, supernatural beings, and the afterlife that much scholarship contends the reformers rejected in the name of “modernity.” This book shows that rather than a concession to tradition, the reimagining of ideas and practices associated with Maitreya was an important site for formulating a Buddhist vision of modernity. To make sense of this it develops a new perspective on alternative modernities by drawing on Charles Taylor’s notion of moral frameworks, arguing that the cult of Maitreya represents an attempt to articulate a new constellation of values that integrates novel understandings of the good clustered around modern visions of utopia with the central Buddhist value of Buddhahood. Part I traces the roots of this constellation to Taixu’s youthful career as an anarchist. Part II examines its articulation in the “Maitreya School’s” theology and the cult’s development from its inception to World War II. Part III examines its subsequent decline and its contemporary legacy within and beyond orthodox Buddhism.Less

Anarchy in the Pure Land : Reinventing the Cult of Maitreya in Modern Chinese Buddhism

Justin Ritzinger

Published in print: 2017-07-27

Anarchy in the Pure Land investigates the cult of Maitreya, the future Buddha, promoted by the Chinese Buddhist reform movement spearheaded by Taixu as an avenue through which to consider the formation of alternative modernities. The cult presents an apparent anomaly: It shows precisely the kind of concern for ritual, supernatural beings, and the afterlife that much scholarship contends the reformers rejected in the name of “modernity.” This book shows that rather than a concession to tradition, the reimagining of ideas and practices associated with Maitreya was an important site for formulating a Buddhist vision of modernity. To make sense of this it develops a new perspective on alternative modernities by drawing on Charles Taylor’s notion of moral frameworks, arguing that the cult of Maitreya represents an attempt to articulate a new constellation of values that integrates novel understandings of the good clustered around modern visions of utopia with the central Buddhist value of Buddhahood. Part I traces the roots of this constellation to Taixu’s youthful career as an anarchist. Part II examines its articulation in the “Maitreya School’s” theology and the cult’s development from its inception to World War II. Part III examines its subsequent decline and its contemporary legacy within and beyond orthodox Buddhism.

The Buddha Party is an analysis of Chinese propaganda discourses that attempt to define Tibetan Buddhist belief and sway opinion within the country and abroad. Much of this is at odds with historical ...
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The Buddha Party is an analysis of Chinese propaganda discourses that attempt to define Tibetan Buddhist belief and sway opinion within the country and abroad. Much of this is at odds with historical facts and is deliberately misleading, but it is widely believed by Han Chinese. It profoundly affects how China’s leaders interact with their counterparts in other countries because most of them appear to deeply believe the official line regarding Tibet, which resonates with Han notions of themselves as China’s most advanced nationality and as a benevolent race that liberates and culturally uplifts minority peoples. The government’s “patriotic education” campaign is a core focus of the book: it forces monks and nuns to participate in propaganda sessions and repeat official dogma, and it is part of a larger campaign to transform China’s religions into “patriotic” systems that endorse Communist Party policies. The book analyzes the core tenets of the official version of Tibetan Buddhism and how these are being received by their intended audience, as well as strategies of resistance. It employs propaganda theory to contextualize the discursive strategies of China’s information apparatus and demonstrates how messages that resonate with Han Chinese fail to persuade Tibetans and other minorities.Less

The Buddha Party : How the People's Republic of China Works to Define and Control Tibetan Buddhism

John Powers

Published in print: 2016-11-03

The Buddha Party is an analysis of Chinese propaganda discourses that attempt to define Tibetan Buddhist belief and sway opinion within the country and abroad. Much of this is at odds with historical facts and is deliberately misleading, but it is widely believed by Han Chinese. It profoundly affects how China’s leaders interact with their counterparts in other countries because most of them appear to deeply believe the official line regarding Tibet, which resonates with Han notions of themselves as China’s most advanced nationality and as a benevolent race that liberates and culturally uplifts minority peoples. The government’s “patriotic education” campaign is a core focus of the book: it forces monks and nuns to participate in propaganda sessions and repeat official dogma, and it is part of a larger campaign to transform China’s religions into “patriotic” systems that endorse Communist Party policies. The book analyzes the core tenets of the official version of Tibetan Buddhism and how these are being received by their intended audience, as well as strategies of resistance. It employs propaganda theory to contextualize the discursive strategies of China’s information apparatus and demonstrates how messages that resonate with Han Chinese fail to persuade Tibetans and other minorities.

The twelfth and thirteenth centuries were a time of tremendous religious efflorescence in Tibet, a period when Tibetans gained their own voice, crafting intellectual and spiritual traditions that ...
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The twelfth and thirteenth centuries were a time of tremendous religious efflorescence in Tibet, a period when Tibetans gained their own voice, crafting intellectual and spiritual traditions that were uniquely Tibetan. This book is a study of the life and work of Rog Bande Sherab (1166–1244). Rogben, as he is known, studied under some of the greatest teachers of his day. An itinerant scholar and yogi, he devoted his life to collecting important textual cycles and meditation techniques. Rogben’s most important work, The Lamp of the Teachings, the work translated in these pages, cuts across the genres of history, doctrinal studies, and doxography. It is also one of the earliest philosophically robust explanations of the “nine vehicle” system of the Ancient or Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism. This book is the first scholarly study of Rog Bande Sherab, a pivotal figure in both the Pacification (Zhiche) and Ancient (Nyingma) traditions of Tibet, and one of the most original thinkers in Tibetan intellectual history.Less

The Buddha's Doctrine and the Nine Vehicles : Rog Bande Sherab's Lamp of the Teachings

Jose Ignacio Cabezon

Published in print: 2013-01-10

The twelfth and thirteenth centuries were a time of tremendous religious efflorescence in Tibet, a period when Tibetans gained their own voice, crafting intellectual and spiritual traditions that were uniquely Tibetan. This book is a study of the life and work of Rog Bande Sherab (1166–1244). Rogben, as he is known, studied under some of the greatest teachers of his day. An itinerant scholar and yogi, he devoted his life to collecting important textual cycles and meditation techniques. Rogben’s most important work, The Lamp of the Teachings, the work translated in these pages, cuts across the genres of history, doctrinal studies, and doxography. It is also one of the earliest philosophically robust explanations of the “nine vehicle” system of the Ancient or Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism. This book is the first scholarly study of Rog Bande Sherab, a pivotal figure in both the Pacification (Zhiche) and Ancient (Nyingma) traditions of Tibet, and one of the most original thinkers in Tibetan intellectual history.

This volume comprises fifteen chapters dedicated to the study of Buddhism among various Mongolian ethnic groups: Khalkha, Oirats/Dzungars/Kalmyks, and Buryats. It presents historical figures that ...
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This volume comprises fifteen chapters dedicated to the study of Buddhism among various Mongolian ethnic groups: Khalkha, Oirats/Dzungars/Kalmyks, and Buryats. It presents historical figures that were influential in the development of Buddhism in Mongolia, contemporary Buddhist monastic and lay practices in Outer and Inner Mongolia and in Buryatia, and uniquely Mongolian artistic and literary Buddhist expressions. The book brings to light some of the unique historical and cultural elements of Mongolian Buddhism and its rich heritage. Although the book is not exhaustive in covering all areas of Mongolian Buddhism, it brings together for the first time a multidisciplinary discussion of various aspects of Buddhism in Mongolia: historical, anthropological, ethnographic, art historical, and literary. It takes into consideration regional and ethnic differences that have shaped Buddhism among various Mongolian ethnic groups. Since the time that Buddhism penetrated the Mongolian steppes and deserts, it underwent a series of transformations, adapting itself to the pastoral and nomadic culture of the Mongols and to different social and political realities. The book delineates some of the transformations that Mongolian Buddhism underwent during different historical periods, while retaining its unique Mongolian features. It offers a window into the interplay between social, political, religious, and cultural factors in the shaping of Buddhism among Mongols.Less

Buddhism in Mongolian History, Culture, and Society

Published in print: 2015-02-09

This volume comprises fifteen chapters dedicated to the study of Buddhism among various Mongolian ethnic groups: Khalkha, Oirats/Dzungars/Kalmyks, and Buryats. It presents historical figures that were influential in the development of Buddhism in Mongolia, contemporary Buddhist monastic and lay practices in Outer and Inner Mongolia and in Buryatia, and uniquely Mongolian artistic and literary Buddhist expressions. The book brings to light some of the unique historical and cultural elements of Mongolian Buddhism and its rich heritage. Although the book is not exhaustive in covering all areas of Mongolian Buddhism, it brings together for the first time a multidisciplinary discussion of various aspects of Buddhism in Mongolia: historical, anthropological, ethnographic, art historical, and literary. It takes into consideration regional and ethnic differences that have shaped Buddhism among various Mongolian ethnic groups. Since the time that Buddhism penetrated the Mongolian steppes and deserts, it underwent a series of transformations, adapting itself to the pastoral and nomadic culture of the Mongols and to different social and political realities. The book delineates some of the transformations that Mongolian Buddhism underwent during different historical periods, while retaining its unique Mongolian features. It offers a window into the interplay between social, political, religious, and cultural factors in the shaping of Buddhism among Mongols.

This book examines the historical contexts and substantive reasons giving rise to Buddhist nationalism and aggressive attacks on Muslim communities in Sri Lanka. While the rise of Buddhist ...
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This book examines the historical contexts and substantive reasons giving rise to Buddhist nationalism and aggressive attacks on Muslim communities in Sri Lanka. While the rise of Buddhist nationalism in general is analyzed and explained, the specific role, methods, and character of the militant Bodu Bala Sena (BBS: “Army of Buddhist Power”) Movement are scrutinized in particular. Whereas the motivations for attacking Muslims may be deep seated economically, elements of religious culture (ritual and symbol) are often seen as catalysts or venues for explosive acts of violence. Chapters address Sinhala/Muslim relations over the past including the impact of colonialism and modernization on both the cultures and the ways in which Muslim identity has been constructed over the past 100 years involving castes, Islamic Tamils, Moors, and Sri Lanka’s “Muslims.” The authors also discuss the involvement of Buddhist monks in the political arena in Sri Lanka and Buddhist Nationalism, in particular that of the BBS’s business or capitalist in orientation and their perceived Muslim manipulation of economic forces. The BBS is further examined regarding its Anti-Muslim campaigns and how it started, is structured, and how it articulates its messages of hatred for Muslims. Confrontations including the violence in Aluthgama and the religiosity of Devanagala are topics as well as the undeniable religious contribution to this violence.Less

Published in print: 2016-11-03

This book examines the historical contexts and substantive reasons giving rise to Buddhist nationalism and aggressive attacks on Muslim communities in Sri Lanka. While the rise of Buddhist nationalism in general is analyzed and explained, the specific role, methods, and character of the militant Bodu Bala Sena (BBS: “Army of Buddhist Power”) Movement are scrutinized in particular. Whereas the motivations for attacking Muslims may be deep seated economically, elements of religious culture (ritual and symbol) are often seen as catalysts or venues for explosive acts of violence. Chapters address Sinhala/Muslim relations over the past including the impact of colonialism and modernization on both the cultures and the ways in which Muslim identity has been constructed over the past 100 years involving castes, Islamic Tamils, Moors, and Sri Lanka’s “Muslims.” The authors also discuss the involvement of Buddhist monks in the political arena in Sri Lanka and Buddhist Nationalism, in particular that of the BBS’s business or capitalist in orientation and their perceived Muslim manipulation of economic forces. The BBS is further examined regarding its Anti-Muslim campaigns and how it started, is structured, and how it articulates its messages of hatred for Muslims. Confrontations including the violence in Aluthgama and the religiosity of Devanagala are topics as well as the undeniable religious contribution to this violence.

For many people, the concept of Buddhist violence is an oxymoron. The image of a Buddhist monk holding a handgun or the view of a militarized Buddhist monastery challenges our popular images of ...
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For many people, the concept of Buddhist violence is an oxymoron. The image of a Buddhist monk holding a handgun or the view of a militarized Buddhist monastery challenges our popular images of Buddhism. However, these sights actually exist in southern Thailand. One of the lesser known but longest running conflicts of Southeast Asia is in Thailand’s southernmost provinces. Among the various causes of the conflict is religious division. Although Thailand’s population is 92% Buddhist, over 85% of the people in the southernmost provinces are Muslim. Since 2004, the Thai government has imposed martial law over the three provinces in this territory and fought with a grassroots militant Malay Muslim insurgency. Buddhist Fury examines five different Buddhist dimensions of the conflict and places them within a global context. Through fieldwork conducted in the conflict area, the book follows the southern Thai Buddhist monks and their practices in Thailand’s deep south. Many Buddhist practices remain unchanged. Buddhist monks continue to chant, counsel the laity, and accrue merit. Yet at the same time, some monks zealously advocate Buddhist nationalism, act as covert military officers, and equip themselves with guns. The book examines the methods by which religion alters the nature of the conflict and the dangers inherent in this transformation.Less

Buddhist Fury : Religion and Violence in Southern Thailand

Michael K. Jerryson

Published in print: 2011-07-28

For many people, the concept of Buddhist violence is an oxymoron. The image of a Buddhist monk holding a handgun or the view of a militarized Buddhist monastery challenges our popular images of Buddhism. However, these sights actually exist in southern Thailand. One of the lesser known but longest running conflicts of Southeast Asia is in Thailand’s southernmost provinces. Among the various causes of the conflict is religious division. Although Thailand’s population is 92% Buddhist, over 85% of the people in the southernmost provinces are Muslim. Since 2004, the Thai government has imposed martial law over the three provinces in this territory and fought with a grassroots militant Malay Muslim insurgency. Buddhist Fury examines five different Buddhist dimensions of the conflict and places them within a global context. Through fieldwork conducted in the conflict area, the book follows the southern Thai Buddhist monks and their practices in Thailand’s deep south. Many Buddhist practices remain unchanged. Buddhist monks continue to chant, counsel the laity, and accrue merit. Yet at the same time, some monks zealously advocate Buddhist nationalism, act as covert military officers, and equip themselves with guns. The book examines the methods by which religion alters the nature of the conflict and the dangers inherent in this transformation.

This book centers on narratives about female renunciation in Buddhism as well as the construction of gender and renunciant identity in the study of Buddhist nuns. Focusing on research about Buddhist ...
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This book centers on narratives about female renunciation in Buddhism as well as the construction of gender and renunciant identity in the study of Buddhist nuns. Focusing on research about Buddhist nuns from Sri Lanka and including conversations with Theravada and Tibetan Buddhist nuns from around the world, the book raises important theoretical questions about the applicability of modern liberal ideas of “empowerment,” “agency,” “autonomy,” “freedom,” and “resistance” in the translation of the lives of Buddhist nuns. It engages canonical Buddhist texts and contemporary religious practices as it considers the construction of the female renunciant as a modern “third-world” subject and questions the idea that the higher ordination of Sri Lankan nuns has been the outcome of a feminist “movement.” By reflecting on colonialist readings of nuns’ lives and on debates about their higher ordination, this book not only asks new questions about the politics of representation regarding the lives of female renunciants but also makes a case for a more nuanced and sensitive reading of their practices. On the basis of extensive long-term field research, the book breaks new ground by proposing that key Buddhist concepts such as dukkha and samsāra, the everyday renunciant practices of nuns, and the upasampadā (higher ordination) itself cannot be subsumed under liberal feminist paradigms, and it argues that the idea of an “authentic” Theravada upasampadā for bhikkhunīs is inseparable from claims about specific ideas of monastic seniority and power.Less

Buddhist Nuns and Gendered Practice : In Search of the Female Renunciant

Nirmala S. Salgado

Published in print: 2013-10-18

This book centers on narratives about female renunciation in Buddhism as well as the construction of gender and renunciant identity in the study of Buddhist nuns. Focusing on research about Buddhist nuns from Sri Lanka and including conversations with Theravada and Tibetan Buddhist nuns from around the world, the book raises important theoretical questions about the applicability of modern liberal ideas of “empowerment,” “agency,” “autonomy,” “freedom,” and “resistance” in the translation of the lives of Buddhist nuns. It engages canonical Buddhist texts and contemporary religious practices as it considers the construction of the female renunciant as a modern “third-world” subject and questions the idea that the higher ordination of Sri Lankan nuns has been the outcome of a feminist “movement.” By reflecting on colonialist readings of nuns’ lives and on debates about their higher ordination, this book not only asks new questions about the politics of representation regarding the lives of female renunciants but also makes a case for a more nuanced and sensitive reading of their practices. On the basis of extensive long-term field research, the book breaks new ground by proposing that key Buddhist concepts such as dukkha and samsāra, the everyday renunciant practices of nuns, and the upasampadā (higher ordination) itself cannot be subsumed under liberal feminist paradigms, and it argues that the idea of an “authentic” Theravada upasampadā for bhikkhunīs is inseparable from claims about specific ideas of monastic seniority and power.

This book examines five poetic works by Alagiyavanna Mukaveṭi to describe how Buddhism in Sri Lanka was shaped and transformed by the encounters with Portuguese colonizers and missionaries in the ...
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This book examines five poetic works by Alagiyavanna Mukaveṭi to describe how Buddhism in Sri Lanka was shaped and transformed by the encounters with Portuguese colonizers and missionaries in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. By following the written works of a renowned Buddhist poet from his position in the court of a powerful Sinhala king through the cultural upheavals of warfare and the expansion of colonial rule and finally to his eventual conversion to Catholicism and his employment under the Portuguese crown, this book uses the poetry of a single author to reflect on how Sinhala verse fashioned new visions of power and religious identity when many of the traditional Buddhist institutions were disappearing and in retreat. The volume traces the development of Alagiyavanna’s poetry as a medium for celebrating the fame of rulers, devotion to the Buddha and the Dharma, morality and truth in the Buddha’s religion, and finally the glories of Portuguese rule in Sri Lanka. Employing an interdisciplinary approach that combines Buddhist studies, history, literary criticism, and postcolonial studies, the author constructs a picture of the effects of colonialism on Buddhist literature and culture at an early juncture in the history of the encounter between Asia and Europe.Less

Buddhist Poetry and Colonialism : Alagiyavanna and the Portuguese in Sri Lanka

Stephen C. Berkwitz

Published in print: 2013-02-18

This book examines five poetic works by Alagiyavanna Mukaveṭi to describe how Buddhism in Sri Lanka was shaped and transformed by the encounters with Portuguese colonizers and missionaries in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. By following the written works of a renowned Buddhist poet from his position in the court of a powerful Sinhala king through the cultural upheavals of warfare and the expansion of colonial rule and finally to his eventual conversion to Catholicism and his employment under the Portuguese crown, this book uses the poetry of a single author to reflect on how Sinhala verse fashioned new visions of power and religious identity when many of the traditional Buddhist institutions were disappearing and in retreat. The volume traces the development of Alagiyavanna’s poetry as a medium for celebrating the fame of rulers, devotion to the Buddha and the Dharma, morality and truth in the Buddha’s religion, and finally the glories of Portuguese rule in Sri Lanka. Employing an interdisciplinary approach that combines Buddhist studies, history, literary criticism, and postcolonial studies, the author constructs a picture of the effects of colonialism on Buddhist literature and culture at an early juncture in the history of the encounter between Asia and Europe.

Chan Rhetoric of Uncertainty provides an innovative, critical textual and literary analysis, in light of Song dynasty (960–1279) Chinese cultural and intellectual historical trends, of the Blue Cliff ...
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Chan Rhetoric of Uncertainty provides an innovative, critical textual and literary analysis, in light of Song dynasty (960–1279) Chinese cultural and intellectual historical trends, of the Blue Cliff Record (C. Biyanlu, J. Hekiganroku), the seminal Chan/Zen Buddhist collection of commentaries on one hundred gongan/kōan cases long celebrated for its intricate and articulate interpretative methods. Compiled by Yuanwu Keqin (1063–1135) in 1128, the Blue Cliff Record is considered a classic of East Asian literature for creatively integrating prose and verse as well as hybrid or capping-phrase (zhuoyu) interpretations of puzzling and perplexing cases, originally selected nearly a century before with verse comments (songgu) added by Xuedou Chonggxian (980–1052), through employing a variety of rhetorical devices culled from both classic and vernacular Chinese literary sources and styles. The spiritual vision expressed in the Blue Cliff Record, apparently originally known as the Blue Cliff Collection (C. Biyanji, J. Hekiganshū) with the title undergoing a change in Edo period Japan, is based on what I refer to as the principle of “uncertainty,” which indicates a resourceful approach to discourse that is characterized by fundamental ambiguity and purposeful inconclusiveness. This approach places full responsibility for attaining self-realization on the individual trainee, who through engaging multiple rhetorical perspectives without fixation or limitation gains spontaneous liberation from intellectual fetters and emotional attachments. What the authors try to reveal are not definitive explications or solutions for enigmatic gongan cases, but a way of exploring and making an assessment of various viewpoints that serves as a model for self-reliance and self-realization. In numerous examples throughout the work, highly stylized remarks seek to upend dramatically or reverse radically staid and stereotypical opinions via a Chan adept’s symbolic ability to “overturn a trainee’s meditation seat and chase the great assembly” or more expansively to “reverse the flow of the great seas, topple Mount Sumeru [the mythical cosmic Buddhist summit], and scatter the white clouds.”Less

Chan Rhetoric of Uncertainty in the Blue Cliff Record : Sharpening a Sword at the Dragon Gate

Steven Heine

Published in print: 2016-07-01

Chan Rhetoric of Uncertainty provides an innovative, critical textual and literary analysis, in light of Song dynasty (960–1279) Chinese cultural and intellectual historical trends, of the Blue Cliff Record (C. Biyanlu, J. Hekiganroku), the seminal Chan/Zen Buddhist collection of commentaries on one hundred gongan/kōan cases long celebrated for its intricate and articulate interpretative methods. Compiled by Yuanwu Keqin (1063–1135) in 1128, the Blue Cliff Record is considered a classic of East Asian literature for creatively integrating prose and verse as well as hybrid or capping-phrase (zhuoyu) interpretations of puzzling and perplexing cases, originally selected nearly a century before with verse comments (songgu) added by Xuedou Chonggxian (980–1052), through employing a variety of rhetorical devices culled from both classic and vernacular Chinese literary sources and styles. The spiritual vision expressed in the Blue Cliff Record, apparently originally known as the Blue Cliff Collection (C. Biyanji, J. Hekiganshū) with the title undergoing a change in Edo period Japan, is based on what I refer to as the principle of “uncertainty,” which indicates a resourceful approach to discourse that is characterized by fundamental ambiguity and purposeful inconclusiveness. This approach places full responsibility for attaining self-realization on the individual trainee, who through engaging multiple rhetorical perspectives without fixation or limitation gains spontaneous liberation from intellectual fetters and emotional attachments. What the authors try to reveal are not definitive explications or solutions for enigmatic gongan cases, but a way of exploring and making an assessment of various viewpoints that serves as a model for self-reliance and self-realization. In numerous examples throughout the work, highly stylized remarks seek to upend dramatically or reverse radically staid and stereotypical opinions via a Chan adept’s symbolic ability to “overturn a trainee’s meditation seat and chase the great assembly” or more expansively to “reverse the flow of the great seas, topple Mount Sumeru [the mythical cosmic Buddhist summit], and scatter the white clouds.”

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